The safety of school district students was of paramount concern for a handful of parents during the Catasauqua Area School Board's Sept. 10 meeting. The parents questioned board members on three bus stops they claim are dangerous due to speeding motorists, overcrowding and the distance their children have to walk from their homes to the individual bus stops.

The bus stops in question are 12th and Bath, Front and Chapel and Third and Cypress streets.

North Catasauqua resident Courtnie Nye, the parent of a Sheckler Elementary School student, told board members there is a 9-year-old child who is picked up at the Third and Cypress location who rides unsecured in the front seat of a van, which she said is a safety concern. She also said motorists speed in the immediate area and disregard the posted stop sign.

North Catasauqua resident Barbara Barber, whose child also attends Sheckler, emphasized the bus that picks up and drops off at the same location poses a danger to children and adults.

Barber specifically cited an automobile that recently hydroplaned and nearly struck parents and children standing in the bus stop area, in addition to UGI repair work being done in the vicinity and a homeowner in the immediate area of the stop whose yard emits bees and has poison overgrowth. Also of concern, she noted, is the absence of a sidewalk for children to walk on.

The parents suggested the district relocate the Third and Cypress bus stop to a different area; move the 12th and Bath bus stop to 13th and Bath and run a van in the morning. but not afternoon hours; and move the Front and Chapel stop to Second and Chapel streets.

There was also mention of a non-public student requesting transportation closer to home.

CASD Business Supervisor Lois Reed emphasized the difficult nature of reconfiguring bus stop locations.

"This has been a dilemma the past few weeks," Reed told the parents and board. "Change is not easy. The problem has always been, as soon as we do this, three more people behind need something else."

District Superintendent Robert Spengler told the parents the board and administration would take note of their concerns and proposals, meet to discuss them and decide on the next course of action.

In an email to The Press Sept. 13, Reed said the district has been looking at the bus stops and is concerned with the wellbeing of its students.

"The administration has been reviewing, visiting stops and identifying the stated reasons for the requests," she wrote. "We are very concerned with the safety of students and put their safety above the savings of eliminating stops."

During the meeting, school board member Sally Reiss asked how many buses run daily.

The school principals reported Sheckler sends out six buses, one minibus and four vans; Catasauqua Middle School runs one large bus and a medium-size bus; and the high school requires seven buses and a few minivans for special education students daily.

Reed said of Sept. 13, the bus stop at Third and Cypress was split to Crane and Cypress, effective Sept. 18.

According to Reed, two stops will be offered that are close but will reduce the amount of students and parents at the Third and Cypress stop.

"I was extremely happy it was done," Nye told The Press. "I was happy it was taken care of so quickly."